Marketers who use behavioural targeting will find it a highly valuable experience.

Stuart Coleman, managing director of AudienceScience and chair of the Internet Advertising Bureau's Behavioural Targeting Council, stressed that consumers need to be aware of what this entails.

"If you walk up to someone and say 'do you want to be tracked online?', the natural response is to say no," he highlighted.

However, by explaining the processes involved, these attitudes can be turned around and worked to the advantage of marketing companies, Mr Coleman believes.

One of the main challenges with behavioural targeting at the moment is perception, the expert stressed, but the value created from the data is worth dealing with and overcoming negative impressions.

Having an insight into an audience can pay dividends for advertisers, providing the information is collated and used appropriately, he added.

The Network Advertising Initiative recently found that behaviourally-targeted advertising had 6.8 per cent conversion rates compared to 2.8 per cent for run-of-network ads.

It also found that behavioural advertising accounted for about 18 per cent of advertising revenue for the companies surveyed.